EFSA rules in favour of food-contact rPET processes

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has received its first tranche of scientific advice on the use of recycled PET (rPET) for use in food-contact applications.

The ten rPET processes so far covered do not give rise to safety concerns if operated under controlled conditions, claimed the authority.

The submissions are the first of a series on recycled plastic materials for food use. Once completed the EFSA’s findings will feed into wider EC decisions on the regulation of recycled plastic and food packaging.

The proposals so far adopted by EFSA’s panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and Processing Aids assessed ten recycling processes, grouped according to their recycling technology.

Among the panel’s conclusions it that the recycling processes do not give rise to safety concerns if the proportion of rPET from non-food consumer applications does not exceed 5 % provided that they are operated under well-defined conditions.

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